Pattern attachment for knitting machines



March 20, 1934. H. E. PAGE PATTERN ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed June 16, 1932 ffl Patented Mar. 20, 1,934

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PATTERN ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Application June 16, 1932, Serial No. 617,565

4 Claims.

This invention relates to an attachment for circular knitting machines by which patterns of various designs may be knit on hosiery or the like. The mechanism herein described and ill lustrated embodies improvements over the pattern-forming mechanism described and claimed in Patent No. 1,751,940 granted to Frank J. Moloney March 25, 1930. The mechanism described in the patent consists essentially of a pattern wheel mounted on a sloping axis alongside the needle cylinder of the knitting machine, the pattern wheel being provided with facial teeth meshing with the vertical slots of the needle cylinder sol that the wheel is driven by the cylinder, and withperipheral notches whereby the butts of successive needles are selectively raised to form a desired pattern in accordance with the location of the notches in the periphery of the pattern wheel. According to the present invention, a 20 pattern wheel of this type is rotatably mounted on a sliding bearing member which is vertically movable in a pair of guides to move the pattern wheel into and out of operative position, the teeth of the pattern Wheel remaining in mesh with the needle cylinder at all times whether the wheel is in its operative or inoperative position. The stud or bearing member for the pattern wheel is movable upwardly by suitable mechanism, as hereinafter described, in response to the actuation of a control cam. This makes it possible to throw the pattern mechanism out of operation temporarily for the knitting of the ribbed tops on half-hose, or for any other purpose.

For a more complete understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the illustration thereof on the drawing, and to the description thereof which follows,-

On the drawing;-

Figure 1 is a fragmentary plan View of a circular knitting machine showing an embodiment of the present invention mounted thereon.

Figure 2 is a section on the line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a side elevation of the pattern wheel illustrated in Figures 1 and 2.

Figure 4 is a perspective View of a slidable stud or bearing member for the pattern wheel.

Figure 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary elevation of a pattern wheel, showing the teeth and notches on a large scale.

Referring to the drawing in detail, parts of a standard circular knitting machine are illustrated, including a needle cylinder 10 'carrying a number of needles 11 vertically slidable in slots, and held in place as by helical springs 12 which surround the cylinder. The needles are supplied with butts 13 which project radially from the needle cylinder 10 and are engageable by the customary knitting cams (not shown) and by a pattern wheel 20. This wheel, as described in detail in the patent to Moloney No. 1,751,240, is provided with a circular series of gear teeth 21 on one of its faces, the periphery of the wheel being notched as at 22 to receive selected needle butts 13 so that the successive needles passing the wheel 20 are raised or not according to the pattern which it is desired to form in the knitted article. The engagement of the teeth 21 in the slots of the needle cylinder l0 ensures that the pattern wheel 20 keeps in step with the needle cylinder throughout the entire operation thereof. Thus the pattern on a stocking or sock will not be spoiled by laterally onset portions which would result if the pattern wheel did not constantly keep in step with the needle cylinder.

According to the present invention, the pattern wheel is so mounted as to be movable into and out of operative position during the operation of the knitting machine. To this end, a stud or bearing member 25 is provided for the pattern wheel 20. This member consists of a block 26 from which projects a stub shaft 27. A wheel 20 is adapted to t on this shaft for free rotation thereon, the wheel being held in place in operation by its facial engagement with the needle cylinder 10. The block 26 is adapted to slide vertically between a pair of guides 30 and 31. These guides may conveniently be upright portions of an integral member having a base 32 slotted as at 33 to receive set screws 34 by which it may be adjustably xed on the surface of a stationary ring of the knitting machine. When the screws 34 are ,A

loosened, the slots 33 permit sufhcient movement or" the base 32 away from the needle cylinder to permit the removal of the pattern wheel 20 for replacement by another wheel to form a different pattern. To hold the stud 25 against the faces of u the guides 30 and 31, a screw 41 with a shoulder portion 42 may be screwed into a suitable hole 43 in the block 26. The axis of the stub shaft 27 is inclined with relation to the rear face of the block 26 which engages guiding faces of the guides 30 and 31 so as to present the wheel 2O at a' proper angle to the surface of the needle cylinder for operative engagement of the teeth 21 with the slots in the needle cylinder.

The block 26 is preferably finished with great accuracy so as to t closely but to be freely slidable between the guides 30 and 31. The weight of the stud 25 and the wheel 2O thereon is suiicient to move the stud and wheel to their lowermost or inoperative position whenever they are free to move. Mechanism is provided, according to the invention, for elevating the stud 25 with the wheel 20 to their upper or operative position, and for maintaining the wheel in such operative position. To this end, a rocking lever 50 is arranged to engage under the head of the screw 41. When the lever 50 is rocked upwardly, the stud 25 is elevated and carries with it the wheel 20 to its operative position. The lever 50 is pivoted at one end as at 51, the opposite end being bevelled as at 52 for engagement with a bevelled cam surface 53 on a cam member 54. The cam member 54 is mounted on the ring 40 to be rocked cn a vertical axis so as to move the bevelled cam surface 53 into and out of engagement with the bevelled end 52 of the lever 50. The cam 54 may be rocked on .its axis at suitable times in response' to a cam drum (not shown) or other equivalent mechanism well known in the art, to which it may be connected as by a link 55. It is evident that when the bevelled end 52 of the lever 50 rides upwardly on the bevelled surface 53 of the cam 54 to rest on the top face of the cam 54, this end of the lever moves through a definite distance represented by the thickness of the member 54. In order to make it possible to adjust the operating stroke of the middle portion of the lever 50 where it engages the head of the shoulder screw 41, I provide means for adjusting the fulcrum 51. To this end, the lever 50 is pivotally attached Vto a link 60 which is adjustably secured to a bracket 6l by a pair of set screws 62 and 63. The bracket 61 is provided with a hole to receive the set screw 62, but with an elongated slot 65 to receive the screw 63. nus the link 60 may be adjusted about the screw 62 as an axis to raise or lower the fulcrum 51 oi 'the lever 50. A guide member 66 may be provided to engage the outer side face of the lever 50 so as to retain the mid-portion of the lever beneath the head of the set screw 41 and to avoid skew stresses on the pivot connection at the fulcrum 51. By connecting the link 55 to suitable automatic cam mechanism well known in the art, the cam member 54 may be rocked at suitable times in the knitting of an article to elevate the pattern wheel 20 to operative position or to permit the wheel to descend to inoperative position.

It is evident that various modifications and changes may be made in the specific embodiment of the invention herein shown and described with out departing from the spirit or scope thereof as deiined by the following claims.

I claim:-

l. In a circular knitting machine having a needle cylinder and needles, a pattern wheel consisting of a single disk adapted to engage and seleclively raise said needles, said wheel having gear teeth directly meshing with said cylinder, a slidable bearing member for said wheel, guides for said bearing member parallel to the axis of said cylinder, and cam-actuable means for sliding said bearing member along said guides during the operation of the machine, whereby the gear teeth remain in meshed engagement with the cylinder.

2. In a circular knitting machine having a needle cylinder and needles, a pattern wheel consisting of a single disk adapted to engage and selectively raise said needles, said wheel having gear teeth directly meshing with said cylinder whereby the wheel is directly driven by the cylinder, a slidable bearing member for said wheel, a

vertical needle cylinder, a pattern wheel consisting of a disk having facial teeth in mesh with said cylinder and rotatable on a slanting axis, a pair of vertical guides adjacent to said cylinder, a bearing member for said wheel vertically slidable in said guides to move said wheel into and out ofV operative position during the operation, or the machine, whereby the gear teeth remain in meshed engagement with the cylinder, a lever rockable to raise said bearing member, and a cam actuable to rock said lever.

4. 1n a circular knitting machine having a vertical needle cylinder, a pattern wheel having teeth meshing with the side of said cylinder whereby the wheel is directly driven by the cylinder, a bearing for said wheel slidable in a direction parallel to the axis of the cylinder to move the wheel into and out oi operative position without interfering with the driving engagement between the cylinder and wheel, a lever rockable to move said bearing member and wheel during the operation of the machine, an adjustable fulcrum at one end of said lever, and a cam engaging the lever at its other end and actuable to rock said lever.

HOWARD E. PAGE. 

